Metamorphosis:
A rebirth and transformation of riverside land within the Three Rivers suburb
The project entails a complete redesign of the urban framework that makes up the economic axis of Three Rivers, turning it into a pedestrian centric space that embraces Indigenous Knowledge Systems, agricultural production and the democratisation of water as its main tools of place making and reconnection. The process of democratising water begins with the implementation of aqueduct systems that transfer purified water from the surrounding tributaries into to a central canal built within the newly pedestrianised economic centre, essentially creating new waterside land that is truly publicly accessible. Apart from democratising the water from surrounding water bodies, the newly implemented water systems will feed into an Indigenous Knowledge System farming setup that has been created along the Vaal River. This farming system would not only purposefully cultivate indigenous plants consisting of medicinal and nutritional properties, but would also create opportunities for the public to access them and their benefits in a purposeful and organised framework. This would not only challenge the pre-existing notion of privatisation currently present within the area of Three Rivers but, more importantly, would provide all people within the surrounding areas access to the harvesting of seeds that the aforementioned plants produce. This would allow for the public to benefit from the plants provided as they would be able to take the seeds back home and plant them in their own gardens. Consequently, this encourages and allows for a sustainable system of farming where seeds are the key output, as opposed to merely stripping the land bare and replanting, as is the case with most mono-culture farms.
